Double Agent: From the bestselling author of Secret Service

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Kate realizes soon enough that everything can be one big chess game the Russians play, with t heir goal of destabilizing the British intelligence agencies. The defector has proof of the PM involved in a sordid scandal--a video supposedly used to blackmail him into Russian service decades prior--and a financial paper trail that undeniably links him to the Russians, but his motives are anything but clear. The deal on the table: arrange for the safe passage of the defector and his family in exchange for proof that the British Prime Minister is an agent for the Russians. She needs to rest and recharge but work comes first, especially at a time of national emergency and the biggest spy exposé since “Kim” Philby.

Kate is clearly under a great deal of strain and the office politics in the intelligence service are just mind boggling. A similar dichotomy arises too between Kate’s super-spy activities and her concerns for her children. There were some unanswered questions left in this book, so I'm pleased that there will be a third book, which will be published next year! All the characters are believable and well fleshed-out, and I was glad to see more of Julia, who proves yet again, that despite her unpredictable mood-swings, she's as loyal, intelligent and capable agent as ever. We are arguably now entering a new Cold War, with tensions between East and West at its ever increasing height.Bradby's narrative is easy to follow, flowing ever so well, and his descriptions of places, emotions, action, thought processes- is done wonderfully. Kate’s deterioration adds a good deal of tension to the story and the ending has a nice touch of cynicism to it. Her life is in shambles really, stress eating away at her, and as she's nearing breakdown and has to pick up the pieces somehow, new information comes to light that could spiral everyone's lives out of control- the Prime Minister is an agent working for the Russians and at their behest. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

These questions plague Kate as she tries to keep it together for her children and ailing mother, steadily losing sleep and, she fears, her sanity. He offers to exchange a kompromat video of Ryan in the company of underage girls for refuge in England. Events make it clear that her visit has been blown, but she is sufficiently persuaded that Borodin should be extracted to press the foreign minister to proceed. While Kate is visiting Venice with her children, she is kidnapped by a senior Russian agent, who wants to defect. There's a nice set piece in Berlin when a planned defection fails, or perhaps was never meant to succeed, but this installment of Kate's quest is largely lacking in kinetic energy, though there's much discussion and political maneuvering.One scene set in Berlinhas guns drawn and a brawl happen 20 metres from Angela Merkel's front door, and the author doesn't seem to realise this, or realise that there is always a police presence there. Henderson, head of MI6's Russian desk, has reason to believe James Ryan, the British Prime Minister, is a Russian sleeper agent, but she has been unable to prove it.

The novel starts off with a murder, and with seven people trapped on an isolated Greek island lashed by a "wild, unpredictable Greek wind. Every time I read about Russia I keep thinking Killing Eve and I am waiting for someone to be assassinated in a ridiculously theatrical style, while dressed as a clown. He has written nine previous novels, including top-ten bestselling Secret Service, and its two sequels , Double Agent and Triple Cross. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. The second in the series with Kate Henderson as a senior MI6 intelligence officer in Secret Service.I love these because Tom Bradby beautifully balances the edge-of-your-seat thriller elements with the spycraft and political infighting. A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy. Michaelides takes a literary turn in his latest novel, employing an unreliable narrator, the structure of classical drama, and a self-conscious eye to dismantling the locked-room mystery.